Former President Donald Trump criticized the removal of a monument depicting Confederate general Robert E. Lee in a statement Wednesday, calling it a destruction of “history and heritage.”
ROBERT E LEE STATUE REMOVED IN VIRGINIA CAPITAL
Trump’s statement bemoaned the deconstruction of “a beautiful piece of bronze sculpture,” which had towered over Richmond, Virginia, since 1890. The statue was cut into pieces for storage in a government warehouse, and the future of those pieces is undecided.
The former president blamed the “Radical Left” for the statue’s removal, claiming activists want to cover up American history, “both good and bad.”
In addition to the statue’s artistic value, Trump said there are reasons to remember and honor Lee as a general and political leader.
“He should be remembered as perhaps the greatest unifying force after the war was over, ardent in his resolve to bring the North and South together through many means of reconciliation and imploring his soldiers to do their duty in becoming good citizens of this Country,” Trump said.
Trump went on to claim that a military genius similar to Lee would have prevented the chaotic American withdrawal from Afghanistan, saying, “If only we had Robert E. Lee to command our troops in Afghanistan, that disaster would have ended in a complete and total victory many years ago.”
“What an embarrassment we are suffering because we don’t have the genius of a Robert E. Lee!” Trump concluded.
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The 21-foot-tall statue was removed following months of litigation. There are no current plans to remove the statue’s base.
